2024-07-13 17:09:25
The Yamagata Prefectural Government in Japan has passed a resolution recommending that residents of the region laugh at least once a day to improve their health.
The Asahi Shimbun reports this.
The Liberal Democratic Party drafted a resolution that was adopted on July 5. The document recommends that Yamagata residents laugh daily to improve their physical and mental health. It also calls on employers to create workplaces that encourage laughter.
The bill’s authors cited a study by the Yamagata University School of Medicine that found that people who laugh often have a lower risk of premature death. The Diet also declared the eighth day of each month “April Fool’s Day” to promote public health.
Some lawmakers spoke out against the resolution. Satoru Ishiguro said that “the rights of those who cannot laugh due to illness or other reasons should not be infringed upon.” Communist lawmaker Toru Seki noted that “to laugh or not to laugh is a basic human right guaranteed by the Constitution.”
The Liberal Democratic Party responded that the ruling does not oblige people to laugh, but only recommends it, respecting the right of each person to make their own decisions.
It is also worth noting that recently the city of Hokkaido declared August 8 as “April Fool’s Day,” and Osaka Prefecture has introduced programs to improve health through laughter.
Earlier, “Cursor” reported that the animal ruined the plans of 2.7 thousand people in Japan.